Zombi

[malanna]

Dried roses, rose leaf, Spanish moss, oakmoss and deep brown earth.

Fresh rose petals scattered by a sophisticated woman in black (for the funeral) on upturned earth. I don't like rose scents, but even though smelling like upturned earth doesn't sound very good on its own, the dirt smell mellows out the roses enough so that I can like them.

[SpinalDesign]

Thanks to the lovely malanna I got this imp today and had to write about it !!

 

 

Wet : My first impressions was it was way to strong for me. It smelt like my aunt when she over dose it with her alcohol like perfumes. I took a second sniff and it’s smelt like alcohol spilt on dried dirt. Everyone knows if you spill liquid on dry dirt a dirt cloud forms off the ground. But I guess that would fit a cemetary theme no ?

 

Drying : The alcohol took on more of spicy smell over a dew covered roses. the dirt lessen just a little so the flower smell could peek over. The rose took more control over the whole smell for a little while.

 

Dry : The scent starts to decompose into a watered wash wood with a dash of cinnamon with hints rose dew. The sent just drift off me.. it lingers in the air as I walked about the house. It’s very dark scent. It’s not a scent you would go “Oh that's such a sweet candy perfume !” It’s far from a flora powder sent. It’s a sent for like a rainy day or like what other said a walk in cemetery or a candle lit room.

 

 

Aftermath : The scent is peaceful to me . Nothing over strong or draws out a human emotions to display like black phoenix would do to me. It’s more of shadow over casting feeling. I love this sent very much. The rose stands out on my skin but it’s a deeper rose sent. Like a dried rose left in a vase over time. It’s a very clean soft scent . I will have to buy a 5ml of this very soon. My friend agrees it fit my personality . To him it smell mysterious and hunting .. to the point of being intrigued enough to follow me where I go. His say this is defiantly a

ghostly zombie smell.

[Alice Aforethought]

This is like a more feminine version of Burial - the earth and leaves are there, but they are more in the background, and it is definitely sweeter.

 

First on, the earth is prominent, with the scent of rose leaves having been rained on and partially sun-dried. This fades to a more powdery, softer rose scent that is not too sweet - instead, it has the fresh-plucked hint of Rose Red about it! The two elements complement each other very well, neither overwhelming the other.

[Nepthys]

Beautifully gloomy. This smells like an autumn funeral ought to. To me it is -- no pun intended -- a very grave scent, good for setting a solemn or meditative vibe, and works well for ritual use. I could see this being perfect for October/November divination and rites. But I also like wearing it just as a spooky earthy scent. Luckily the rose is just a whisper on me and doesn't dominate.

[Northernminx]

I was a bit frightened this would turn too earthy, or too rose scented as it was in the bottle. However, previous reviews and the description hit this right on the head. A dry, brittle rose with the oakmoss adding some earthiness, this is a dry, decayed rose blend, gorgeous and reminiscent of the bunch of roses i have dried on my dresser. I am not yet certain I'm keeping this one for extended use but another test or two will tell.

[omly]

I love roses, but can't wear sweet smells well. Zombi is the perfect solution. In the bottle the rose is strong, but even those not overly fond of rose should not fear. As it dries it darkens and mellows. It smells like the roses I would dry in my kitchen. There is that slight dry mustiness underlying the fragrance of roses. A little dab will do you though; a little of this oil goes a long way. It wafts beautifully, and all day I was getting whifts that made me wonder what that wonderful smell was.

 

ADDED May 9:

 

So I finally got around to ordering a 5mL of Zombi along with the bottle of Graveyard Dirt. As the two have been discussed so much together I figured I would rereview Zombi.

 

In the bottle this is more earthy than I remembered. This is fairly reminicient of the potting soil in-the-bottle scent you get from GD. It is interesting to note that compared with an older imp of Zombi it is much less floral.

 

Even upon drydown the newer bottle has more of an earthy component, though with both there is more rose once it has a chance to sit on my skin for a little bit. Either way though, I love how this smells like I have been working in the garden. There is the smell of freshly turned over earth and a significant rose component. I love both the smell of earth and roses, so this is a great scent for me.

[sarahjay]

I received this imp as a freebie, I'm not sure I would have choosen it myself as the 'dirt' description put me off... but it's really really lovely, I'm so glad I was given it!

 

I do love the oakmoss in lush's 'tramp' showergel, so I showered with that first, then used dust-to-dust dusting powder (rose) and queen of hearts soap (rose) on my face, then tried the zombi.

 

oh my goodness, the dirt scent was strong at first - but scented beautifully of oakmoss and complimenting the tramp wonderfully. later the rosy-dried-posy scent has come to the fore - wonderful.

 

I love it - and I thought I had my next order almost sorted in my mind......

[spark]

Like others, I was a little afraid of Zombi. It would not have been on my list but for the reviews, and even then I couldn't quite commit -- when swapping with the lovely tart, I told her to choose one for me (Zombi vs Wolf's Heart) because I couldn't decide. I am SO glad she chose this one.

 

Zombi is a very green rose. But not green in a boring, watery way, like Lucy's Kiss. My other favorite rose is Othello, but Othello is a little much for summer days in the office... Zombi is perfect. I don't get a sad or mournful or earthy sense from it at all.

 

Really, I am terrible with notes and descriptions; all I can really say is I LOVE THIS!

 

Also, althought the notes are different, I'd call Zombi the rose version of Queen Gertrude.

[miss apple]

Zombi: In the vial I can smell faded roses and a pungent green earthiness.

 

Once on, the greenness deepens into a dank, humid, mossy scent with a hint of dirt. Very different and unique in a good way. After a few hours the rose peeps out - it's a faded rose, almost as if it has been crushed into the damp ground. This scent started out strong but faded after about four hours. It's an interesting oil but I'm not sure I'd get a larger bottle.

[VelvetSky]

I don't feel that anything more can really be said about Zombi that isn't said in the description.

 

Freshly turned, moist earth (black, fertile earth) touched with dry roses, gentle greenness and an extremely wicked note of oakmoss.

 

This scent is slightly disturbing to me, in a good way. I remember as a kid these commercials for the old 'Creature Feature' and 'Chiller' movies, in which a pale bony hand with 6 fingers pushed it's way up through black dirt and a wolf howled mournfully in the background.

 

Zombi gives me chills like that!

[pkwench]

Zombi

 

First impression was "Dirt!" Then when I put it on, I amended that to "potting soil" and the good, dark, rich kind at that. Now that it's dried down, it's potting soil with a little twinge of something musky, and the faint hint of a dead rose. I don't know if anyone will get the comparison, but it reminds me of how Raistlin's smell was always described in the Dragonlance books. Something musty, something earthy, something perhaps dried and dead ... but still fairly pleasing at that.

[Shollin]

First sniff: Pale roses and damp earth – dark, rich gardener’s soil after a soft rain. The afterscent of Zombi smells exactly how I expect a Bertie Bott’s dirt-flavoured jelly bean would taste.

 

Wearing: Moist-earthy and powdery-flowery at the same time? How? The Bertie Bott’s impression is heartily reinforced here – I definitely feel like I’m tasting this scent more than smelling it, which leads to the distinctly unpleasant thought that this is what being buried alive might smell like… as interesting as this scent is, I really don’t think I can wear it. And now that I’ve had that thought I absolutely cannot wear it to bed. Off it goes.

[Splendid Molerat]

Zombi is giving me some flashbacks to childhood.

 

I used to hide in the garden under the overgrown vine roses. There's the damp earth and thick moss, and a patch of clay I'd sometimes nibble on (fine grit, almost sweet). Around the first frost the roses would be dead or dying all around me, and the thick tangle would create a still pocket of warmth on an otherwise chilled day.

[sarahmarie]

Okay, this scent is really creepy and everything, but I have to say that it makes me giggle. I mean, it's just so uncanny - it smells *exactly* like a freshly dug grave with a bunch of dried roses. It's freaky, in a way, but for some reason my reaction to smelling it is just to laugh. It makes me think of Bertie Bott's every-flavor beans (as they are in the HP books, I've never actually tried the ones Jelly Belly makes ).

 

All that said, this is exactly as it is described, and I like it much more than I thought I would. I don't know how often I'll wear it, but I definitely like having it around.

[Theravada]

I got this as a freebie from the Lab and I have to say that I agree with sarahmarie!! Zombi is amusingly creepy. It makes me want to go explore a haunted house or a graveyard.

 

I really respect the skill that went into creating this scent. It perfectly captures the earthy, dried floral, mossy smell of a grave and is so well named. Beth is amazing.

 

But having said that, I don't think I really want to smell like a Zombi. I might try it as a room scent. But I'll more likely just swap it because I'm not a fan of rose scents to begin with.

Edited October 15, 2004 by Theravada

[cuervosueno]

I got this as an extra--I knew from the descrip. I wouldn't order it myself.

And? Well, yes, like everyone says it smells like dirt. But not a lovely earthy smell to me, I'm afraid, but.....BEETS! I hate beets! It smells so much like beets to me that I recapped it right away....didn't even get the rose scent.

and in a way, the beet thing makes sense....if you wanted to get essence of dirt, what better way to get it than with beets, that both taste and smell like dirt. (At least to me!)

too bad...I love zombie movies and love the name, but.....

and you know, it is pretty zombie-ish, at that....

[amaltheagray]

blah. i wrote a review for this which was promptly eaten by the internet connection here at work. hope i don't end up double posting!

 

anyway, zombi is bizarre. i like waving it under people's noses just to see their reactions. the rose is very very dry. the dirt and moss are clearly present and the laying is almost visible. the dirt isn't fecund or sensual in any way, it's dry and rich and cold. the moss and leaves make it insanely sharp, which is intense when combined with the sweetness of the rose. it's like a bouquet of roses left on a grave in the cold of december.

 

ah, in my original post i wrote that the dirt is almost civilized, and it reminds me of how graveyards and buriel rituals "civilize" death.

 

this scent also reminds me of anita blake, for obvious reasons. and because i can imagine her smelling of cemetary dirt and the roses jean-claude's always sending her.

 

a little of this goes a long long way.

[Lady Ravenglass]

Zombi.

 

This smells like the interior of an Anita Blake novel. I don't know what makes this smell like turned earth, but it's doing its job. The roses are heavy and funereal and dark and rather nice. It's faded on me to a darker version of Old London that I think I could get used to, but the sour, earthy edge keeps catching me by surprise and disturbing me somewhat. It smells like opened earth in a rose garden, where broken petals are scattered wetly on the ground. There's something powdery in there too, like the baby powder scent of Unseelie, et al. Now there's disturbing images. Tiny Victorian gravestones, with tea rose bushes planted round the stone that marks too few years.

 

I think I like it, but I'm not sure. If the earth note fades a bit more, I'll be keeping it for at least another wear. Like Old London and Lucy's Kiss it has a wistful Victorian air to it, which will certainly be the roses coming out strongly. I'll pop this in some wax later on; I share the predictions of previous posters that this will scent a room beautifully. If only I had the right kind of parlour

 

Oh, and I see amaltheagray has got the same image I did! Glad to know I'm not going off my rocker.

Edited October 19, 2004 by Lady Ravenglass

[Penance]

I'll admit it, I picked this one purely because of the name. Who doesn't want a perfume named after the walking dead?

 

First sniff:

 

Loamy dirt; the deep, wet, black kind. It smells almost exactly like Demeter's Earthworm, which is good because I like Earthworm. There might be the faintest hint of roses here, too, but the smell of soil is so strong that it's hard to tell. This reminds me more of growing up in the country than it does a grave. I really like this!

 

Wet on skin:

 

This smells exactly like Demeter's Earthworm on me. And I do mean exactly. The only difference is this is stronger. There's no change from bottle to skin, it's still fresh-turned black dirt. My mom says it smells like "dead dirt", which is appropriate given the name of this particular scent.

 

Dry down:

 

It's gotten even more loamy if that's even possible. I don't smell any roses in here, which is just fine by me because I don't like the smell of roses. This reminds me more of fresh-turned dirt on a farm when the planting is being done for the year than it does a funeral and I really enjoy that association because it brings back a lot of happy memories for me. I don't find this mournful at all, it's actually a very cheerful smell for me, but that's admittedly because of the associations I have with the smell of black dirt.

 

The bottom line:

 

Unique, very unique. I really like this one, it's one of my favorites, although I can see it not working for everyone.

[VorpalBunny]

This one is totally rose and dirt. Light and sweet and lovely. It’s very feminine on me, I can’t imagine it on a guy. Dirt sounds weird but it’s actually nice, like a comforting earthy smell. Like working in the garden. And it describes it perfectly. The scent is predominantly rose, though. I think this is one of my favourite rose scents. It's bumping something out of my Top Ten.

[Faerykin]

Zombi

 

Swiped across wrists and along collarbone.

 

Initial Wet (8-8:30am): I can detect the roses, and they are certainly the darkness of dried roses. Also, they are surrounded by a thick, deep earthiness that I’m not certain I like. A very brown scent, redolent of freshly turned grave earth.

 

Initial Dry (8:30-10am): That thick, deep earthiness becomes more prominent. It isn’t completely unpleasant, just not a scent for me I’m afraid.

 

Throughout the Day (10am-4:00pm): Oh yeah, this is definitely the scent of old, dead flowers in a graveyard – either right after the rain so the scent of the earth is fresh, or right next to a new grave. Anita Blake eat your heart out! So not a scent for me. Off to the Swap Pile with you.

[tart]

Zombi smelled like the potpourri in my friend's mom's house. Their house was decorated in dark green and deep red, which I also associate with this blend's scent. This is certainly the smell of dried roses -- it contrasts sharply with the fresh roses of Persephone. I'd recommend this for someone who likes Othello.

[JazzieCazzie]

IN THE BOTTLE: Very strong and powerful. Very green and red at the same time. I am not getting the rose scent at all in the bottle and can't put my finger on what the predominant scent is ... it's not bad, just different.

Dabbed sparingly on wrists since I can tell this one is a kick ass scent.

WET: Whoa there, big fella, here comes the rose scent. And I emphasize "scent." With most of the BPAL rose notes, it really smells like fresh roses to me ... this, I guess because it's dried roses, is more of a perfumey rose scent rather than roses themselves. VERY strong.

DRYDOWN: This reminds me a lot of when I was a teen and Bloomingdales started hawking this "tea rose" scent, by dipping little wooden sticks in the scent and giving them out to unsuspecting girls in the store. We'd stick them in our pocketbooks and smell like tea rose for months. As such it is a very evocative scent for me ... BUT not one I'd wear ... too in-your-face. Not bad, just not me.

[malati]

On application I could strongly smell both rose and earth though not always at the same time.

 

As it was drying the rose quickly disappeared and the earth became more airy. I used to work in a park and was reminded of how it smelled after rain. This scent gradually faded as rose came to the foreground.

 

It developed into a very soft powdery rose with a hint of green to it which has lasted the whole day. A very pleasant and calming fragrance.

[Lucretia]

I was hoping this would be more earthy, but instead I get sort of a mossy and musty dried rose smell. I recognize some of the moss from hamadryad, but mainly it smells a bit like seance to me, very sad and lingering, but honestly this is not one of my favorite rose scents at all. I'm going to have to say I prefer London when it comes to a soft rose.